GMADA Announces ₹3,690 Crore Compensation Award for Eco City-3 Land Acquisition

What was decided

The Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) acquired 716 acres of land from nine villages for the Eco-City-3 project of New Chandigarh, with the Land Acquisition Collector of GMADA announcing the award of compensation on Tuesday, thereby clearing the way for taking possession of the land from the owners under Section 19 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. This is the formal compensation award stage of the statutory acquisition process — the step that legally authorises GMADA to take physical possession of the land, separate from the earlier Social Impact Assessment and Section 4(1)/Section 19 notifications that preceded it.

A related report put the total payout figure precisely: the 716-acre Eco City-3 in New Chandigarh — covering nine villages including Kartarpur, Kansala and Rajgarh — has already seen its compensation award declared at Rs 3,690.32 crore.

Villages and acreage covered

The villages whose land has been acquired under the award announced by GMADA include Kansala (169 acres), Kartarpur (93.6 acres), Rajgarh (42.1 acres), Takipur (317.3 acres), Hoshiarpur (59 acres), Rasulpur (2.06 acres), Dhodemajra (0.3 acre), Majra (6 acres) and Salamatpur (6.7 acres). Takipur alone accounts for nearly half the total acreage, while Rasulpur, Dhodemajra, Majra and Salamatpur contribute only small parcels each.

Village-wise compensation rates

GMADA has determined the value of the acquired land on the basis of the average sale registrations recorded in these villages over the past three years, which explains the sharp village-to-village variation despite geographic proximity.

Land pooling alternative to cash

Landowners are not limited to the cash award. Based on the adopted policy, those who allocate one acre of their land receive 1,000 square yards of developed residential plots, in addition to 200 square yards of developed commercial plots, excluding parking space. Those who prefer not to take commercial space can instead opt for a larger residential-only allocation of 1,600 sq yards per acre. Although the landowners will receive substantial monetary compensation, they are expected to mostly opt for the land pooling scheme, as landowners in previous GMADA projects have mostly opted for the land pooling scheme because of the long-term investments generated by the developed plots.

Beyond land or cash, farmers also received stamp-duty exemptions on future agricultural land purchases, agricultural electricity connections, and an annual subsistence allowance — part of a package GMADA officials have described as designed to be favourable to affected landowners, following the pattern used elsewhere in the wider Greater Mohali acquisition drive.

Project background and delays

The Eco-City 3 plan was first conceptualized in 2016 and described as a large expansion of development plans for New Chandigarh, but its development experienced disruption in July 2020 because GMADA annulled the acquisition procedure due to budget constraints and poor reaction to its land pooling scheme; the acquisition procedure for Eco-City 3 restarted again in August 2022. The December 2025 award marks the point where that restarted process reached the compensation-and-possession stage after roughly three years of renewed work.

Practical effect and next steps

The award clears GMADA to take physical possession of the 716 acres and move toward infrastructure works. Tenders for development work are likely to be floated in the first quarter of 2026, according to Sakshi Sawhney, the Chief Administrator of GMADA. The final launching of Eco-City 3 — i.e., the opening of plots for allotment — is likely to be initiated by the end of 2026, after the initial infrastructure development plan has been formulated. As of mid-2026, infrastructure works (sewerage, roads, water supply, stormwater drains) were reported to be underway but plot allotments had not yet opened; GMADA has indicated a combined launch strategy alongside the adjoining Eco City-2 Extension once infrastructure is complete.

How this fits the wider Greater Mohali expansion

The Eco City-3 award is one piece of a much larger acquisition drive across Greater Mohali and New Chandigarh. The state government has set in full motion the compulsory acquisition of a whopping 11,103 acres across Greater Mohali and New Chandigarh to build seven new townships, seven new sectors, three new pockets of Aerotropolis near the Chandigarh international airport, and a brand-new commercial city centre in Sector 87 Mohali modelled on Chandigarh's iconic Sector 17. Three of the villages affected by the Eco City-3 award — Kartarpur, Kansala and Rajgarh — reappear in a separate, later notification: the Punjab government issued a Social Impact Assessment notification on June 2 for the compulsory acquisition of 526.03 acres of land across four villages — Kartarpur, Kansala, Rajgarh and Boothgarh — for the development of the Eco City-4 residential project. That Eco City-4 notification is a Section 4(1) SIA trigger only, several statutory stages behind the Eco City-3 compensation award — it does not itself involve a compensation figure or possession order.

Separately, for the commercial Sector 87 development referenced in the region's alternate names: the proposed new commercial Sector 87 — developed on the pattern of Chandigarh's Sector 17 — along with the new industrial Sectors 101 and 103, covering a combined 509 acres, have progressed to the Section 11 stage after the mandatory social impact assessment was completed and cleared by the expert committee, a separate and distinct decision track from the Eco City-3 award covered here.